City of Grande Prairie Parks crews begin pruning Elm Trees throughout the community starting October 1, 2021 until March 31, 2022.

Crews will be concentrating on removing dead wood from City-owned elms in residential areas and along major roadways and cleaning sites as they prune.

The annual elm pruning program is important to complete each year to prevent any problem with Dutch Elm Disease and also to ensure the trees have proper structure and form.

Dutch Elm Disease (DED) is spread by the Elm Bark Beetle. These beetles are attracted to freshly cut areas or open wounds of the tree and will quickly infect any neighbouring elms. Proper pruning techniques will remove any dead or damaged branches which discourage infestations. Provincial requirements do not allow elm tree pruning from April 1 to September to prevent the spread of DED.

For more information about Elm Tree pruning, please contact Parks Operations through the Citizen Experience Team at 311, email parks@cityofgp.com or visit cityofgp.com/trees.